For several years, manufacturers and retailers, particularly in the technology industry, increasingly have offered rebated items. Manufacturers appreciate the opportunity the rebate practice offers to promote their products, and retailers benefit because rebates draw people into their stores. However, these benefits are somewhat mitigated by the fact that consumers often experience the rebate process as both frustrating and time-consuming. This frustration is often directed towards the retailer as the responsible party when, in fact, the manufacturer is usually the issuer of the rebate. Retailers are increasingly subjected to bad public relations because of this misconception.
PLUSNET MARKETING (PNM) is a Wilmington, Del. based fulfillment house and consultant on business services to pharmacy chains, grocers and similar retailers. PLUSNET MARKETING is a leader in advanced fulfillment systems and had operated an earlier conventional “mail in” rebate redemption system based on conventional inputs of UPC, proof of purchase and consumer information. As an improvement over such conventional mail-in programs, PNM has developed and implemented a patented system which allows a consumer to redeem his rebate in as little as two weeks, all without sending in a receipt or barcode. Currently PNM has its technology in COMPUSA, RITE AID, HAPPY HARRY'S DRUG STORE and some other retailers. PNM launched its improved rebate program in COMPUSA on Sep. 25, 2005, and has since saturated the entire chain of 250 stores. STAPLES, and its fulfillment company PARAGO, are also currently operating a similar system.
The fulfillment system now used by PNM, according to its U.S. Patent Publication No. 2004/0210481 (the entirety of which is herein incorporated by reference), may generally be described by the following process steps:                (1) a consumer purchases a product and receives receipt with a corresponding serial number;        (2) the consumer accesses a designated site of a global computer information network. Such as the Internet;        (3) the consumer enters and transmits (i) a serial number of the product and (ii) the consumer's personal information;        (4) a rebate fulfillment administrator receives electronic data transfer of purchase data records from point-of-sale (POS) system;        (5) the fulfillment administrator (i) associates each stored data record with a purchase data record, (ii) validates the rebate claim, and (iii) confirms that the claim is not fraudulent; and        (6) the fulfillment administrator transfers the cash value of the rebate claim to the consumer.        
PLUSNET MARKETING systems are further described in its U.S. Pat. No. 6,748,365, U.S. Publication No. 2004/0125514 and U.S. Publication No. 2002/0161641, the entirety of each being incorporated by reference. These disclosures cover improvements on conventional rebate systems, which speed and simplify the redemption process as well as encourage e-filing via the retailer's website, which in turn, provides exposure to promotions and customer directed information. Key features of the PNM's disclosed systems include a transaction code that consumers submit to the fulfillment center which is generated at the POS. The code is used to initiate a rebate claim, rather than uniform product code (UPC) and proof of purchase sales receipts, as with conventional rebate systems. A purchase record is also generated by the retailer's POS, including all items purchased, units, price and product code, date, time and place of purchase together with the unique transaction code. The retailer electronically transfers this data to the fulfillment center.
In PNM's disclosed systems, rebate claims can include a multitude of different rebate eligible items, can be submitted electronically via the Internet (via the retailer's or fulfillment center's web site or the like), by phone or by paper copy. Claims are filed after purchase and redemption sequentially follows claim filing. This facilitates cumulative rebate programs. Claims can be paid by multiple means such as check payment, store credit, loyalty card, and promotions premiums.
Retailers using PNM's system as implemented display an icon on their receipts indicating which rebated items are eligible for electronic submission. Currently their implemented service is limited exclusively to retailer rebates only.
Other proposed improvements to rebate programs have been described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,467,686; 6,450,407; 6,278,980; 6,039,244; 5,905,246 and 5,729,693. However, all such proposed and existing systems likewise involve a substantial delay between the time of purchase and the time in which payment can be requested and received by a consumer. Thus, manufacturers, retailers and the consumers would benefit greatly by further improvements to the rebate redemption process.